A deep dive into Oregon’s schools: South-Central Oregon
A very sparsely population region, south-central Oregon faces many obstacles when it comes to education: Geographic isolation. Financial instability. Lack of professional growth opportunities. Limited access to resources and technology. Despite this, the educators in this region make a robust effort with what resources they have to provide a quality education for their students.
The largest city in the region, Klamath Falls, is similar to Grants Pass (see the article on southern Oregon) in that it is served by both a city and a county school district. The city school district, Klamath Falls City Schools, serves approximately 2,770 students across four elementary schools, one middle school, one high school, one alternative high school, and a home learning academy for grades 1–12.
The Klamath Falls City School District has a reputation for its inclusive environment — it’s a very easy district to make new friends in. Additionally, the district’s teachers have been praised for being very invested in the success of their students. For students who are interested, the district offers several agricultural programs to accommodate for its rural surroundings.
However, the district has been criticized for its lack of adequate support for students with disabilities. In particular, the advocacy group Disability Rights Oregon has accused both the Klamath Falls City School District and the Oregon Education Department of violating educational rights by reducing instructional time. Furthermore, the district has very limited class options, and little options for clubs or extracurricular activities outside of sports.
The largest school district in the state by area, the Klamath County School District serves parts of Klamath Falls, as well as the smaller towns of Bonanza, Chiloquin, Malin, and Merrill. Because of the huge area this district covers, some students have to ride the bus for up to three hours to get to school. The district serves 7,081 students across 12 elementary schools, four junior/senior high schools that serve grades 7–12, two junior highs, two high schools, one alternative high school, and one charter school.
Despite its huge geographic extent, the schools in the district are relatively small. The largest school in the district, Henley High School, only has 693 students (Klamath Union High School, in the city school district, is even smaller, with 645 students). This smaller environment creates a stronger sense of community, and like the city school district, the teachers in the county school district have been praised for their dedication and commitment. Unfortunately, the test scores in the Klamath County School District have consistently fallen short of the state average — only 28% of students are at least proficient in math, and 42% in reading.
Why are the test scores so low? Is it because of ineffective teaching strategies? Not entirely. While that certainly does play a huge part in determining test scores, there are several other factors at play here. Let’s look at the socioeconomic background of the Klamath County School District: about 0.4% of students are classified as economically disadvantaged, meaning they lack access to resources that support educational achievement. Due to its isolation, the district also faces issues with recruiting and retaining quality staff. This has resulted in a student-to-teacher ratio of 19:1, compared to the state average of 18:1.
Regardless of what district they attend, students in Klamath County are buoyed by the Klamath Promise, a community initiative designed to create a seamless pathway for students from preschool to college and career readiness. The Klamath Promise fosters collaboration between schools, community organizations, parents, higher education institutes, local government, and native American tribes to provide a support network to help students achieve their academic goals.
Unfortunately, like most rural, low-income areas, drugs and alcohol are a wide-spread epidemic in Klamath County, and its schools, regardless of the district, are no exception.
Moving eastward, the Lake County School District serves 775 students in three elementary schools (one serves K-3, one serves 4–6, and one is a K-6 school); one middle school (7–8) and one high school (9–12).
Although the Lake County School District is in a similarly rural and isolated region, the district offers several programs and scholarships to support its students (most notably the Bernard Daly Educational Fund). Despite this, the school has struggled with student involvement in extracurricular activities and athletics, which has lead to a weaker sense of community compared to other similarly sized schools. Furthermore, students who are non-white or LGTBQ+ have experienced trouble fitting into the district’s rural setting.
Conclusion
Education faces many challenges in rural, isolated areas across the country. South-central Oregon is no exception. These challenges have motivated the community to rally behind the schools and create several initiatives to aid the students. Despite this, widespread poverty, troubles with retaining quality staff, and widespread drugs and alcohol epidemics have significantly hampered educational success in this area. Although the schools lack the variety of programs offered in more populated areas, the smaller sizes mean students will form friendships here that will last a lifetime.